Dress-shield.



.No- 860,915. PATENTED JULY 23, 1907.

' H. D. HARDOASTLB & W. B. BIDDLE. I

DRESS SHIELD.

PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP 1,531,190?- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY DELAWARE HARDOASTLE AND WESLEY BARTINE BIDDLE, OF ATLANTIC CITY, NEW

JERSEY.

DRESS-SHIELD.

Patented July 23, 1 907.

Application filed January 31, 1907. Serial No- 355,152.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HARRY DELAWARE HARD- CASTLE and WESLEY BARTINE BIDDLE, both of the' city of Atlantic City, in the county of Atlantic and State of New Jersey, have invented certain Improvements in Dress-Shields, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to a new and useful dress shield and consists in providing the same with stiffening or staying means whereby the shield is retained in its original form and position, when placed in the sleeve of a dress or other garment and further by reason of the arrangement of the parts of the shield follow the movements of the arm.

It further consists of other novel features of construction, all as will be hereinafter fully set forth.

Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a dress shield embodying our invention. Fig. 2 represents a sectional view on line :r-x, Fig. 1. sents a perspective view of the stiffening or staying devices in detached position.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in the figures.

Referring to the drawings. In the dress shields now in use great difficulty has been found in keeping the same in their original form and position by reason of the fact that they curl or become crooked and in addition the outer flap usually remains close against the inner. Our invention is designed to overcome these defects and we provide braces or stiffeners which extend substantially from one edge of the inner flap to substantially the edge of the outer fiap and also cross braces, by which arrangement the original form of the shield is maintained and in addition as the arm is moved from the body the outer flap will open out, as will be apparent.

We have shown in the drawings one form for carrying out our invention, but we do not desire to be limited to the exact form as herein shown and described, as changes may be made which will come within the scope of our invention and other instrumentalities may be employed which will accomplish the same results and We, therefore, desire to make such changes as may be necessary.

While we have shown the stiffeners as applied to the ordinary form of dress shield, it will be understood that any suitable style, form, size or shape may be used and that any suitable material for bracing, stiffening or staying the dress shield may be employed, although we preferably use feather-bone of any desired shape or form, although it will be understood that aluminium may be employed or any other material which may be suited for the purpose.

1 designates a dress shield consisting of the flaps 2 Fig. 3 repreand 3 (which will hereinafter be called the inner and outer flaps respectively).

4 designates a central brace which in the present instance extend from substantially the edge of the inner flap 2, is bent at 5 and extends to the outer edge of the outer flap 3, as best understood from Fig. 2, said brace being secured to the flap in any desired manner, in the present instance, by being stitched at its edges by the same stitching which connects the binder 6 to the flaps.

7 and 8 designate the end stiffeners which extend from the edge of the one flap to the edge of the other and being bent where the flaps join, as best seen in Fig. 3, it being understood that these stiffeners or braces are likewise connected with the dress shield inthe same manner as the brace 4. It will be seen that in this manner each flap is stiffened and properly held 'as'the three essential points are provided with the stiffeners 4, '7 and 8, and that owing to the fact that the said stiffeners are bent and extend from one side to the other, a spring action is imparted to the flaps of the shield, since the material composing the stiffener is adapted for this purpose, whereby it will be understood that the normal position of the dress shield is as shown, in Figs. 1 and 2, and that as the arm presses against the side of the wearer the flaps are pressed together, but immediately upon raising the arm the flaps separate, which is evident.

In order to further stiffen and brace the parts, we provide the longitudinally extending stiffeners 9 and 10, one being connected on the inner side of one flap and one upon the inner side of the other flap. In the drawings we have shown the longitudinal stiffeners as applied to the flaps first, after which the other stiffeners 4, 7 and 8 previously designated are connected. This will positively connect each member of the stiffener upon each of the flaps together so that they will act in unison and the longitudinal strips may be connected with or secured to the other stiffeners in any desired manner, as for example by sewing or otherwise, it being understood from Fig. 1 that I have indicated in dotted lines the stitches which secure the stiffeners in position, it being understood that the stitches may run the entire length of the stiffeners securing the same at all points to the shield.

It will be evident that some of the stiffeners may be omitted and that the same may be connected in any suitable or desired manner in order to accomplish the necessary results.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a dress shield, 11 single piece stay or stiffener extending from substantially adjacent the edge of one flap to substantially a point adjacent the edge of the other flap,

and a longitudinally extending stay or stifiener extending across each flap above the center thereof.

2. In a dress shield, a stiffener or stay connected to one flap adjacent its edge and extending to a point adjacent the edge of the opposite flap and connected therewith, shorter stays or stiffeners connected to the flap adjacent the ends thereof and being integral, and longitudinally extending strips on each flap connected therewith.

3. A dress shield consisting of two flaps, a stay or stiff- 10 ener extending longitudinally across each of said flaps and secured thereto, a central stay or stiffener extending from one edge of one flap to the edge of the other flap and bent at the point of junction of the flaps, and angularly extendingstays adjacent the ends of the dress shield and extending from one flap to the other and secured thereto.

HARRY DELAWARE HARDCASTLE.

WESLEY BARTINE BIDDLE.

Witnesses v EMMA ROWE DICKERSON, ALMON SHERWOOD RISL'EY. 

